Post-NaNoWriMo--3 Key Writing Rules That Will Make You Win

NaNoWriMo ended a few weeks ago for me and when I reached that 50,000 word milestone, I was elated. I wasn't sure whether I had it in me to write another book. I know there are many good and bad things said about NaNoWriMo, but I did it because I wanted to feel involved and have some kind of incentive--a motivation--to write this new novel I've been tentatively plotting in my head for a year. However, I learned something very important: I cannot write a novel in a month.

I have precisely half of a first draft begging to be finished on my Macbook. Still, I've made a promise to myself that I will finish it.

As it was my first time participating in NaNoWriMo, I had to conduct some research prior to participating and I'm glad I did. It helped me keep on track and create rules for myself.

I thought I'd share some of my personal NaNoWriMo rules:

Plan

Plan your NaNoWriMo project out. Whether it be a short synopsis, a detailed summary, or a full blow detailed outline of each chapter like I did, just do some planning. Establish your characters a little and have at least a partially clear idea of what you're writing about. A murder? A zombie apocalypse? A girl who has to go on a journey to save her friend from the depths of Hell (that's actually a real book--EXCELLENT read!)

I grabbed a notebook (and pen) and over the course of two months, I wrote a summary for each chapter that I knew would happen. It didn't fill in my entire plot, but it helped me stay on track.

Keep A Writing Schedule

I do actually have a finished novel that I'm FINALLY looking into getting published. When I tell people this, sometimes they say that they wished that they had time to write a novel or that maybe one day they will. The truth is, you will never have time unless you make time. Prioritize. TV or write? Look at Facebook or write? Knit or write? You have more time than you think and with NaNoWriMo, make a schedule, stick to it, and write everyday that you can. No excuses.

Just Write 

I honestly think the hardest part about writing a novel is finishing it. I know people who start a book and it's great for the first chapter or two, then WHAM! They don't know what to write or they just think that their writing sucks, or even more irritating is the intense urge to go back and edit.

My advice: don't do it! Don't go back and edit until your first draft is finished. Just write, no matter how bad you think your work is. I once made the mistake of going back to edit an unfinished first draft in a past writing project. It created problems because how can you edit the beginning if you don't even know how it ends? If you have this problem, know that it is a "writer thing." I can nearly guarantee you that every writer in the world experiences this at one time or another.

Even right now I'm experiencing that terrible feeling in my gut that every sentence I write in my NaNoWriMo novel is a collection of the worst sentences ever.

Conclusion

Just write. Don't look back. You can do it.

An Essay I Wrote for the DAR Christopher Columbus Essay Contest--Joining Christopher Columbus On His Voyage to the New World

Last year was my third year participating in the Christopher Columbus Essay Contest hosted by the Daughters of the American Revolution (DAR). I won the local division and earned first place in the state of Maine. I unfortunately did not place in the regional division. 

The topic was: "Joining Christopher Columbus On His Voyage to the New World."  

As I approached the docks, I inhaled the crisp, salty scent of the sea. The sun had just begun to peek over the horizon, revealing that dawn had arrived. A jittery excitement coursed through me as my eyes fell upon the sight of the three beautiful ships that would set sail very soon. They went by the names of the Niña, the Pinta, and the Santa Maria.

The docks bustled with crewmen and I aided in loading last minute cargo onto the ships. The entire time, a tense knot was drawn in my stomach because I knew what was out there and I was neither naive nor foolish. Being a seasoned seaman, I was very aware of the dangers—and the prosperity—that could be found at sea. Finally, a warning call was given and I hurried to board the ship I had been assigned to: the Santa Maria. As I stepped on the ramp I took a deep breath. A pang of sorrow engulfed me at what I was leaving behind; my family, land, comfort, and more. Even worse was the sense of knowing that I might never come back home.

As I came aboard, I caught the resilient gaze of the man who was commander of the three ships. His name was Christopher Columbus. He nodded at me and I returned the nod, trying to act as if I were as fearless as him.

Once all the men were aboard, we prepared to depart. Columbus began directing orders and some of the men started to pull in the ropes. I aided with setting the sails to accommodate with the direction of the wind. A few of the men on the port began to bellow out a tune that reflected sorrow and hopefulness. Before long, our voices echoed across the harbor.

Next thing I knew, our ship was sailing. The Niña and Pinta trailed at a safe distance beside us and our captain called out commands. Although my hands were occupied from handling the functions of the ship, my thoughts were elsewhere. This was my first voyage with Columbus but I had gone on many other voyages before. However, something about this one seemed different. I’d heard rumors of Columbus’s trials in gaining permission to sail. He had confronted Queen Isabella and King Ferdinand with his proposal of finding a new trade route to Asia.

As expected, the first day at sea was very ordinary and the weather was fair. There was nothing in the world that could replace the panorama of adventure that being out at sea gave you and this day was no exception. Furthering ourselves from shore, we went to work. The captain posted the lookouts and the rest of us were posted forward and another in the round-top. At eleven o’clock, we were served our first meal on the ship and it was the only hot meal we received that day. Throughout my watch, we scrubbed the decks until they were clean and clear, trimmed the sheets and braces, and when there was nothing else to do we scrubbed the rails, made spun yarn, and began chafting gear out of old rope and overhauled the gear. As I labored, I thought about the riches I might gain from this journey. Tis a seaman’s greatest hope! I laughed at myself. Such daydreams were for fools. Besides the hope for great wealth that might never come, my other desire was for a daring adventure.

At three PM, the first dogwatch was set; the second dogwatch just after sunset; and before nightfall watch, all hands were called to evening prayer. Afterward, the pages slammed a great wooden dish upon the table and we were provided with a meal of ill-cooked, stringy salt meat. Everyone grabbed his share and I attacked my own with my sheath knife, downing everything with a glass of watered wine. The chatter was cheery but I knew that within weeks the men would begin to complain for the things that they couldn’t have. Tis a hard life at sea. Once our meal was finished and every bone was left as clean as ivory, we changed shifts.

Once night had befallen, I searched for a place to sleep. With no bed we had to sleep on the hard floorboards above deck. However, I was weary. I stuffed up some cloth and laid it beneath my head as a pillow. As I lied down to rest, I pulled a thin, burlap sheet over my body but it did little to warm me. As I attempted to fall asleep, I listened to the sound of the water that lapped gently against the side of the ship and the potent smell of salt in the air. I eventually fell into a deep, dreamless slumber.

I awoke the next morning to men yelling and cold water being splashed onto my body as a wave fell over the rails. I jumped awake, only to find that my clothes were soaked and the sky had turned black while I’d been asleep. A giant clap of thunder startled any remaining sleepiness from me. As I wondered how I’d slept through so much, I ran to the starboard where many of the men wrangled with the ropes that held the sails up. A flash of lightning illuminated the fierce waters that waged war with us. More water spilled over the rails and I nearly fell as it rocked the ship violently to the side. Everything onboard was soaked and to the dismay of many of us, water leaked below deck where the food was stored.

However, every storm eventually runs out of rain. The wind died down and the clouds scattered. A dry wind came through, drying the ship out. We had to spend the entire day recovering from the storm. When the storm first cleared, I went to pump out the foot of water which had accumulated below deck. Fortunately, most of the food hadn’t been destroyed by the water. Afterward, I went above deck to help mend the sails and pull them back up. Later, I grabbed a bristled brush and assisted in cleaning and clearing the water from the decks.

Since the day had started off chaotic, we had our mid-day meal late. Columbus came to us then and praised us for our adeptness in keeping the ship intact. We then bowed our heads in a prayer and gave thanks to the good Lord who had delivered us safely from the storm.

After the mid-day meal, I took the shift in the round-top. I watched the horizon with interest and observed the other two ships that sailed beside us. As a soft sea-breeze ruffled my hair and clothes, I thought about how this wouldn’t be my last adventure. Although I was fit, had sturdy hands, and could tie a seaman’s knot in less than a minute, I knew that these skills had not been given to me for no reason at all. Neither had my courage to keep coming out to sea been without cause. 

I was born for this.    

                                                              

Bibliography

“Columbus de Gama and Zheng He: 15^th Century Mariners Crash Course World History #21.” Produced by Crash Course, U.S, YouTube, Web. www.youtube.com

“Columbus Ships Crew. “ Web. www.christophercolumbusev.com

“Columbus Ship Replica.” YouTube, Web. www.youtube.com

Covert, Adrian “6 Tools to Sail the High Seas Like Christopher Columbus.” 10 Oct. 2011. Web.   www.gizmodo.com

“Glossary of Nautical Terms.” Wikipedia. Web. www.wikipedia .com

Morison, Samuel Eliot “Admiral of the Sea: A Life of Christopher Columbus.” Canada. Little, Brown & Company, 1942. Print.

Morton, Donna G. “What Navigational Tools Were Used in the Year 1400.” 2 June, 2014. Web. www.ehow.com

Smith, Tiffany A. “How Did the Faith and Courage of Christopher Columbus Bring to Mankind a New World.” Nov. 2013.

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Here are my past essays for this contest: 

"How Do Americans View Christopher Columbus and George Washington Today?"

"How Did the Faith and Courage of Christopher Columbus Give to Mankind a New World?"

An essay I wrote—How Did the Faith and Courage of Christopher Columbus Bring to Mankind a New World?

In 2012, I wrote this essay for a contest by the DAR (Daughters of the American Revolution) and submitted it, unsure of what would happen. I was rather surprised when I received a letter nearly six months later that I was second place in the state, only two points away from going to the Regionals. 

“How did the faith and courage of Christopher Columbus give to mankind a new world?”

Imagine you’re standing on the grand, marble stone steps of the Lincoln Memorial, thinking about all of the great things that President Lincoln accomplished before his death. He was the man who after all signed the Emancipation Proclamation that stated that all the slaves in the states were to be freed. Perhaps it’s not a famous man like President Lincoln but your great, great grandfather who bravely fought in World War II and now has a plaque in his honor in some great hall. Whoever it may be, you must think, what do they all have in common? It is these things: faith, indomitable spirit, and courage. They come together and shape the true character in a man. Many, many men and women alike have portrayed true character and courage to reach a goal. If you can recall the countless names of the men and women who have reached out and made history in the United States of America, you must know that they had to have high faith, indomitable spirit, and courage. Of course, the United States and all of North and South America wouldn’t be where it was now if it weren’t for a man named Christopher Columbus. Maybe to you he is known as the explorer who sailed from Spain and found the Americas but he is more than that. He is a man who made his mark on the world.

Not much of Columbus’s childhood is known. It is believed he was born in Genoa, Italy in 1451. Columbus came from a middle class family and had little education. His father was known to be a wool weaver and also owned a cheese stand in which Columbus worked in as a child. However, as many other young men his age did, he began his life as a sailor. Oblivious to Columbus, this is where his dream began. By the time he was an adult, he had an avid experience in sailing. Columbus came back home and married “Dona” Filipa Moniz Perestrela and had his first child, Diego Colón. Sadly, his wife died at the birth of Diego Colón.

Now for some time, there had been discussion of a westward route to Asia by sea. After his wife’s death, Columbus became interested in this idea and studied books and maps on the matter. He later married Beatriz Enríquez de Arana and he had a second son, Ferdinand Columbus. In 1484, Columbus sought support from King John II of Portugal to voyage across the high seas in search of a westward route. Unfortunately for Columbus, he refused the request.

This undoubtedly offered Columbus frustration. Even so, he refused to give up and after an innumerable amount of effort and time he eventually found support from King Ferdinand of Aragon and Queen Isabella of Castile. They made an agreement that Columbus would receive ten percent of the profit made from the voyage(s) and also to have the authority to govern the lands he discovered.

Columbus is known to make four important voyages in his lifetime. As he sailed bravely across the seas, it had not likely crossed his mind just how famous these voyages would make him in the future or how it would precisely affect mankind. Some would say he is only renowned for being the man out of the many other explorers who happened to be lucky enough to come upon the Americas. To others, however, it is not just a coincidence.

On his first voyage he took three ships, the Pinta, Niña, and the Santa Marìa. After several days at sea, they spotted landfall and before long they landed at an island in the Bahamas which Columbus named San Salvador. Believing he had found India, he called the natives there Indians.

On his second voyage, he brought with him 17 ships with 1500 men. He explored five different islands before coming to Cuba, which he thought was actually China. He attempted to govern the natives who lived there but was unsuccessful. Therefore, he journeyed back to Spain to report to Queen Isabella and King Ferdinand five months later.

On May, 1498, Columbus was once again approved to take on a third voyage. He took with him six ships and before long he landed in Hispaniola on December 5. Sailing further, he sailed downward making landfall in Trinidad. The next day they reached the mainland, accordingly, discovering South America. The expedition then sailed across the Caribbean to Santa Domingo, meeting an unexpected hindrance: The colonists of Santa Domingo were in revolt. Since Columbus had requested that he governs the lands he discovers, he tried to do so but was soon forced to face the royal commissioner Francisco de Bobadilla. He detached him from the government and sent Columbus back to Spain in chains, only to be freed by royal command.

Columbus adorned a fourth voyage on May, 1502. He sailed back to Santa Domingo, but this time, he was denied permission to land, despite the coming of foul weather. Columbus was right being worried because as it was, a terrible hurricane passed through bestowing chaos through the area. When the storm elapsed, Columbus only found minor damage on his four aging ships and soon afterwards they were able to set sail again. Regrettably for Columbus and his crew, they were not fortuned with ideal weather. The four ships, weather beaten and old, would be a challenge to sail back to Spain. As a result, Columbus had to make a decision. He decided to abandon his four ships and so they became marooned in Jamaica for a little over a year.

Columbus did eventually make it back to Spain and lived to be fifty-four years old. He died on May 20, 1506 in Valladolid, Spain. Although he wasn’t essentially the first to discover the Americas, he was the first to bring back the news to the rest of the world that there was a new world out there, across the seas. When Columbus died, he died believing he had found Asia.

Because of Columbus’s discovery of the New World, the era of exploration and colonization began. Europeans migrated to the Americas, colonizing Canada, the United States, Mexico and the South American nations. For Europe, it was a substantial discovery because not only did it prove that there was land among Europe and Asia, but it endowed a possible new life for those who wanted it.

Nonetheless, Christopher Columbus was a brave man with a great mission. Regardless of the difficulties he faced he never gave up. He had to face rejection for funds to take on his first voyage; he had to conquer sickness, unpleasant weather and the many other hardships that transpired while sailing; he had to confront rebellious colonists. There was likely an hour when Columbus felt like giving up, but he didn’t. He persevered. We wouldn’t be where we were today if it weren’t for him. He gave us the intuition to create history because he created history himself. With his high faith and indomitable courage, he gave to us a new world where there was opportunity to build a story, a story about mankind, where sufferings and triumphs shaped us into today’s society.

Bibliography:

Rosenberg, Matt. “Christopher Columbus: A Biography of the Explorer of the Americas.” Education. Geography. About.com. geography.about.com/od/christophercolumbus/a/Columbus.htm

Ghare, Madhavi. “Christopher Columbus Biography and Life Story.” Buzzle.com. www.buzzle.com/articles/christopher-columbus-biography-and-story.html

Grolier Family Encyclopedia, Vol. 5. “Columbus, Christopher.” Pp. 114-116

“Christopher Columbus: The Untold Story.” Understanding Prejudice. Social Phycology Network. Understandingprejudice.org. www.understandingprejudice.org/nativei9/columbus.htm

Minster, Christopher. “The First New World Voyage of Christopher Columbus (1492). Education. Latin American History. About.com. latinamericanhistory.about.com/od/latinamericatheconquest/p/columbusfirst.htm

“Christopher Columbus Fourth Voyage.” Columbus Day. Columbus Day.com. columbus-day.212.net/the-fourth-voyage.php

“Christopher Columbus Death.” Columbus Day. Columbusday.com. columbus-day.212.net/Christopher-columbus-death/php

“Christopher Columbus Biography.” Columbus Day. 123Holiday.net. columbus-day.123holiday.net/Christopher_columbus.html